Character Analysis of Jack in Lord of the Flies

Introduction

Jack is the young man in Lord Of The Flies, a 1954 story by William Golding. Jack is a young boy who has crashed landed on an island deserted by other boys. Lord of the Flies is set on an uninhabited island in the Pacific Ocean. The island has no elder adults to oversee the children. There are many symbolisms that the boys encounter during their stay. For example, Piggy's glasses for creating fire, the pigs head (Lord the flies), the conch. These are all important elements of the novel. Jack, however, is a significant one.

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Jack still tries to be civilized at the beginning of the book and wants to make rules. "We have to follow the rules. We're not savages, after all. "We're English and the English excel at everything," Jake says in chapter 2. Then Jack starts to change slowly, and he develops a wild and violent side. This is evident when Jack's hunting job begins to take control of his mind. We are told that Jack felt a "compulsion" to hunt down and kill the things that were consuming him. This word "compulsion" suggests that Jack does not have any control over this feeling. Jake became more violent throughout the novel and his innocence was lost.

Jack's decision to not kill the pig in chapter 1, page 15, made him more spontaneous or gave him a crazy craving to kill it again. This idea is supported by the notion that Jack was'swallowing up' this feeling/action. It was a feeling or thought taking over his entire life. Jack may have become so obsessed that he feels like a failure for not killing the pig. He now wants to kill one to prove that he is a man who is worthy of being chief. Jack keeps saying in chapter 1, and then going on to chapter 2, pages 15-16, that he will spill his blood and eat the pig's meat next time he sees it. Jack is fascinating because it is hard to imagine why someone would kill or become so obsessed with something unless he was insane.

Jack is the leader of the choir, and the first time he interacts with other boys on the island. Jack also wants to lead the boys. For most of the book, Jack retains complete control over that group of boys and transforms them into killers and hunters. Jack ridicules the use first names and insists he is called "Merridew", in chapter 1, on page 9. But it doesn't stick. Chapter 2 of Lord of the Flies also shows Jack's domineering nature, as well as his arrogance, and desire to control. Piggy and Ralph have made great efforts to create a rules-based order system, but Jack doesn't seem interested. He wants to be the sole responsible for the boys. This is evident from his actions. He interrupts Ralph's speeches and talks in front of the boys, even though he is the one with the conch.

Jack insists on being the hunter's leader, one of his most important actions towards the beginning of the novel. Jack volunteers to keep the signal fire going at the summit of the mountain. Jack finally kills a pig, but it seems that all this does is make him more insane and more dreadful. After they have killed the pig, Jack leads a group chanting, "Kill the Pig, Cut Her Neck, Spill the Blood" in chapter 9, page 84. This is a very disturbing scene. The boys look far too young to be performing such insane actions. Jack's orders have made them savages. The boys' actions of 'cut','spill' and other words are visceral and forceful. Jack then paints his face. Face painting is symbolic for hunters because it allows them freedom and quickly descend into savagery. A major point was also when Jack and Ralph engaged in a fight that neither of them wins, before Piggy attempts to address the tribe again. Roger, now sadistic and aiming to kill Piggy, intentionally drops a boulder from a high vantage point. This destroys any sense of safety or order.

Golding described Jack as tall, thin, and boney. His hair was also red underneath the black cap. His face was sloppy, freckled, and ugly. Two light blue eyes stared out of his face, frustrated now and ready to turn to anger. Jack is the main advocate for anarchy in the island. Jack leads the savage tribe that hunts the pigs. Jack is the leader of the savage tribe that hunts the pigs. He opposes Ralph and Piggy in almost all matters. He is a teen villain from the 1980s, but unlike Ralph, he takes advantage of power and abuses it above all others.

Conclusion

In short, Golding creates Jack a fascinating character by making Jack grow from a pleasant boy to one who challenges authority and becomes the authority on the island. Jake is a character throughout the novel.